Database Users

Tmobile USA HTC HD2 sells out in a matter of hours

http://www.electronista.com/articles/10/03/26/t.mobile.hd2.may.be.runaway.success/
Although selling 21k units at launch isn't THAT impressive, the fact that it sold out is pretty impressive. T-mobile either purposely kept a short supply of them to create marketing buzz when it sells out, or they miscalculated the demand for the phone and didn't stock enough.
Whatever the case is, the HD2 is being well received here in the states.....I've gotten compliments on it here and there as I've been out and about. A lot of people saying 'I hear its better than the iPhone.' I pull out my iPhone and I tell them 'it is'.

mystik610 said:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/10/03/26/t.mobile.hd2.may.be.runaway.success/
Although selling 21k units at launch isn't THAT impressive, the fact that it sold out is pretty impressive. T-mobile either purposely kept a short supply of them to create marketing buzz when it sells out, or they miscalculated the demand for the phone and didn't stock enough.
Whatever the case is, the HD2 is being well received here in the states.....I've gotten compliments on it here and there as I've been out and about. A lot of people saying 'I hear its better than the iPhone.' I pull out my iPhone and I tell them 'it is'.
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i wonder why? i mean there hasn't been not as much commercials as the nexus1? and the nexus 1 sold about 20k in 1 month i think?

well myself loves the HTC brand first one was the 8525 aka the brick lol....this one with some custom work will be great it think

shu8i said:
i wonder why? i mean there hasn't been not as much commercials as the nexus1? and the nexus 1 sold about 20k in 1 month i think?
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The Nexus 1 is an excellent device...and really represents the best technology that's available for mobile phones. As a device its great, but from a marketing/distribution perspective, its a flop. Google has had an enourmous amount of success in the software/digital/web marketspace. 'Google' is a household word now and the word 'google' itself has become an adjective for looking something up on the internet. 'Google it'. Android is really taking off and showing a lot of promise, and is posing enough of a threat to Apple and Microsoft , and are forcing them to react. Apple is reacting in the form of lawsuits, Microsoft in the form of WP7.
The problem with the Nexus 1 is that google tried to apply concepts that led to their success in the software arena to the software/digital arena to the hardware arena. A lot of the success of Android is attributed to its open-source nature...its ability to grow and evolved without being inhibited to a closed platform. They tried to apply a similar concept to the Nexus 1 by trying to circumvent carriers and selling the phone directly through their website. They believed that carriers inhibit the growth of mobile devices.
In the end, they overlooked the importance of being able to go to a store and experience of phone first-hand. The beauty of the AMOLED screen is something you can only appreciate if you see it in person. They also overlooked the importance of having actual people marketing, selling, and flat-out educating people about the device. They can only sell so many units by relying on the tech-savvy folks who would go out of their way to follow and research the device online.
Beyond that, the market is saturated with Android phones, and by putting Android on so many platforms, they end up indirectly competing with their hardware partners (ie droid outselling the Nexus 1). This is in stark contrast to the iPhone, where they alone sell only 1 version of the iPhone and mobile OSX themselves. Why do you think the iPhone's sales figures look as good as they do?

Onward to Nexus 2 ((article about N1 no actual info on N2))

http://asia.cnet.com/blogs/rehashplus/post.htm?id=63019568&scid=rvhm_ms
Gen 3 (Nexus One) came out mere weeks after the Milestone, using state-of-the-art technology not proven in the market. A shock to Motorola, certainly a shock to me, and I bought the Nexus One immediately when the specs were confirmed. How did it leapfrog Motorola's efforts? Probably because whoever made the Nexus One did not need to justify anything, project profits, etc. The only thing they needed to do was to make the Nexus COOL and to make it the bee's knees.
By all estimates, the Nexus One was a failure. Just because it had small sales numbers, limited distribution by telcos. But anyone who wanted it can buy it. For most people outside of the US, it's expensive like hell because it has none of the telco subsidy bull****. But it has no locks, no telco overlays, no badly customized custom user interfaces, it's easy to root, to hack, and to make it the phone of your dreams. It's the best handset I ever owned. Ever. Speaking of today, of course.
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The bolded really hit home.
I sincerely hope Google doesnt flat out give up on it. That they do have a sequel that will be available to all carriers. Nexus One pushed everything forward and back to back with the Droid legitimized Android as a premiere (and to many) THE premiere mobile OS. The amount of powerful handsets that have been dropped the last 7 months is ridiculous and only due to Android. Otherwise we'd still be stuck on Winmo 6.5 , an iPhone with no retina display or multitasking ,or a dead WebOS. Regardless of sales figures the Nexus one was the most important handset to drop this year.
Sadly because of those low sales figures Im not sure if we'll actually see a pure Google Nexus 2.
All these phones without colored trackballs have me worried too =-O.
p.s leave some comments...I tend to support bloggers/writers who can write without gross bias. This guy also happens to love N1.

Generally agree, except for the part of "By all estimates, the Nexus One was a failure". Low sales number don't equal failure. Look at PS3, they just broke even on that thing, and they sold A LOT.
Besides, google never planned to make money on phones. They are not htc. They don't make phones. They plan to make money on the OS and partnerships with manufacturers who want to run Android (+ google ads).
People forget that Nexus One, although branded as google phone, is actually an htc headset.

DarkDvr said:
Generally agree, except for the part of "By all estimates, the Nexus One was a failure". Low sales number don't equal failure. Look at PS3, they just broke even on that thing, and they sold A LOT.
Besides, google never planned to make money on phones. They are not htc. They don't make phones. They plan to make money on the OS and partnerships with manufacturers who want to run Android (+ google ads).
People forget that Nexus One, although branded as google phone, is actually an htc headset.
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It didnt shake anything up.
Most people have no Fn clue wth a Nexus One is.
Sales figures were laughable.
Thats what people will measure it by.
As a piece of technology it was massive success. Considering the BRUTAL bias and flat out bogus reviews it received , the 3g, wonky soft buttons , and MT problems you'd expect it to be a total dud.It was anything but.

xManMythLegend said:
It didnt shake anything up.
Most people have no Fn clue wth a Nexus One is.
Sales figures were laughable.
Thats what people will measure it by.
As a piece of technology it was massive success. Considering the BRUTAL bias and flat out bogus reviews it received , the 3g, wonky soft buttons , and MT problems you'd expect it to be a total dud.It was anything but.
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True, but I think we have to understand that goal was never to sell millions of Nexus Ones and make tons of money. N1 is kinda like a Android demo phone. Something that manufacturers and interested developers/users can try and see where Android is going, what it really is. That's the real goal, not to sell it as a regular money-making gizmo.
I think in that sense, N1 was a huge success. Think about it. Manuf. and developers tried it out, and loved it. Proof is that immediately manufacturers like htc, motorola and samsung (not even mentioning logitech, gm, cisco...) jumped on the bandwagon, seeing the potential in it.
I think the real hardware "money makers" were always intended to be Evo 4G, Galaxy S, some lower-end android phones that AT&T is launching.. Those are your standard gizmos whos success you can measure in sales numbers.
G1 -> Nexus One are special, their success is not to be measured in sales, but in exposure and future developments.

I have yet to handle any phone that feels as solid and expensive as my Nexus One.

I'd love to get my hands on a Nexus Two.
It doesn't even have spec rumors yet and I want it. I love the openness of it and that it's the one that gets Googles focus. Love it!

There won't be a nexus two.
Google is sitting on a pile of Nexus Ones and is trying to unload them anyway they can. It's painfully obvious retail hardware is not a business they want to further pursue.
Your best bet for another phone as open as the nexus will be the next developer phone, or something from Nokia's brand.

Google, give me a Nexus Two with the following:
4.3" Screen (720p-ish resolution)
Next-gen processor (hummingbird? or one of those duel-core cpus?)
768+ MB of RAM/ROM
Front Facing camera (VGA is fine)
8+ MP regular camera
Optical trackpad (see blackberry)
Hardware back, menu, home, search buttons
HDMI out
8GB internal storage (16 would be nice too )

Google have never actually said that the Nexus One was a failure right? They said that the Web Store is a failure as it didn't meet their expectations. The Nexus One not selling so many units is because it was only available on a failing web store. When Google announced they were closing the web store they said that Nexus One's will be sold in retail stores, they didn't say they are discontinuing the product like how Microsoft have with the Kin phones.
And Google have said that the reason the Nexus One didn't appear on Verizon and Sprint was because Google changed the sales model early on (choosing to close the web store but announcing it much later) and as the networks were going to get equivalent phones to the Nexus One, Google and the networks decided to pull out. I reckon the reason why the Nexus One was delayed so much on the Vodafone network was due to the fact that Google were changing their sales model.
However the Nexus One did achieve a goal of pushing manufactures to produce high quality phones. The Nexus One specs are now like a minimum for all future smartphones.

The nexus one was being produced at the same time as all the other HTC lineup, it's actually the lower end of HTC current snapdragon line.
Had google not bid on this specific model, we would proably be seeing this exact phone Labeled T-Mobile MyTouch HD or something without and unlockable bootloader.

do you guys honestly think google expected to sell millions of nexus one's when all they did is throw up a few ads on a few websites? they didnt do any primetime TV ads, nothing. you honestly think that google didnt do that on purpose? no way would they have expected huge sales with that kind of marketing platform (or lack thereof). they wanted a develper phone, and that's what they got. of course if they bought primetime TV space like apple does, then they would have sold a lot more. i dont see how people fail to see this logic.

JCopernicus said:
There won't be a nexus two.
Google is sitting on a pile of Nexus Ones and is trying to unload them anyway they can. It's painfully obvious retail hardware is not a business they want to further pursue.
Your best bet for another phone as open as the nexus will be the next developer phone, or something from Nokia's brand.
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If that'd be true in any way, u'd see discounted prices and specials for N1.
Do you? Cause if you find one, I'd love to be proven wrong (my friend wants nothing but N1 now).

DarkDvr said:
If that'd be true in any way, u'd see discounted prices and specials for N1.
Do you? Cause if you find one, I'd love to be proven wrong (my friend wants nothing but N1 now).
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They still have an investment in them, they're not going to willingly lose that money.
My comment was directed at their current strategy of selling them in "retail stores all over the place".

RogerPodacter said:
do you guys honestly think google expected to sell millions of nexus one's when all they did is throw up a few ads on a few websites? they didnt do any primetime TV ads, nothing. you honestly think that google didnt do that on purpose? no way would they have expected huge sales with that kind of marketing platform (or lack thereof). they wanted a develper phone, and that's what they got. of course if they bought primetime TV space like apple does, then they would have sold a lot more. i dont see how people fail to see this logic.
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EXACTLY. You guys are jumping on a bandwagon of "N1 was a fail". It's completely wrong. Stop believing stuff that some trolls write on a forum.
It's extremelly shallow to think that all things that are released are released to sell as many as possible. Or that pure "items sold" would give you an idea of how successfull item was.
There are many, many cases of special edition cars, stereo systems, you name it. Some items are designed and sold for a different purpose. To increase awareness, to hit a small portion of the market. To create a sense of "rarity" or "urgency", etc etc.
Want proof? Ok. Remember the GMAIL model. First year or two you could ONLY get gmail by INVITE. If you didn't know, google wrote a book on "Virus Marketing". Creating a sense of rareness, coolness and priviledge towards a certain item. It works, they're not idiots. They are doing the same thing with N1. Just enough marketing to sell them, but not enough to sate people with the idea. Think about it.
In a way, you're holding a rare (or soon to be), barely advertised, special edition Android 2 phone. Don't complain that not everyone bought one. It was never meant to be.
Besides.. don't be naive. If google (one of biggest web advertisers in the world) would want to REALLY advertise their phone... Trust you me, they'd advertise the BEJESUS out of it. They'd sell millions worldwide. That's just not their goal.

JCopernicus said:
They still have an investment in them, they're not going to willingly lose that money.
My comment was directed at their current strategy of selling them in "retail stores all over the place".
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Changing from online sales to store sales does NOT equal failed product.
Even if google indeed got dissapointed with online sale model, it doesn't mean that N1 is an epic fail, as quote from first post states.

I never said it was a failed product, they've already turned a profit on it.
Changing your primary business model shows your product wasn't a great success.

JCopernicus said:
I never said it was a failed product, they've already turned a profit on it.
Changing your primary business model shows your product wasn't a great success.
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Correct but the product that wasn't a success is the Google Web Store, not the Nexus One.
The Web Store failed, the Nexus One didn't.

Sarg92 said:
Correct but the product that wasn't a success is the Google Web Store, not the Nexus One.
The Web Store failed, the Nexus One didn't.
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This is more in general, and not directed specifically at you, Sarg, but at some of the similar comments along the same lines.
I'm pretty sure Google was aware of these things prior to selling the N1:
1 - Most people in the states buy phones subsidized from the carriers
2 - Most people don't want to shell out almost $600 for a phone
3 - The economy kinda sucks
Why would they proceed, knowing the above, if they intended the N1 to be as successful as the iPhone?
Perhaps, just perhaps, Google is aware of a small but serious community of people who love technology and want the latest and greatest. Perhaps Google's goal all along was to target a select few and push the development of the OS, the apps, and the general market for Android devices.
To me, the N1 is really like phase 2 or 3 in a lengthy strategic plan that is, in all aspects, going rather well.
1 - Secure an OS (Purchase of Android)
2 - Develop and market and OS (Release of G1)
3 - Grow the base
a - Advertise Android​b - Put out more Android devices​c - Release a killer device to spur OS, app, and marketshare development​4 - Drop more serious Android devices (and we're seeing a ton now)
5 - World domination
The indent feature on 3a, b, and c didn't work quite like planned, but c'est la vie. You get the idea.

th0r615 said:
Google, give me a Nexus Two with the following:
4.3" Screen (720p-ish resolution)
Next-gen processor (hummingbird? or one of those duel-core cpus?)
768+ MB of RAM/ROM
Front Facing camera (VGA is fine)
8+ MP regular camera
Optical trackpad (see blackberry)
Hardware back, menu, home, search buttons
HDMI out
8GB internal storage (16 would be nice too )
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Click to collapse
I could imagine with Gingerbread coming in October, and the fact that the Dev 2 phone (myTouch) doesn't fit any of the requirements, that we'll see a pretty updated Dev 3 phone designed specifically for Gingerbread.
That's would make logical sense to me anyway.

I wish nexus one had more storage (4GB or higher) because it can't rely on memory card as it may fail. In addition, more storage can let me store more music on the phone itself and free the memory card for video.
Generally I am happy with nexus one and I think the migration from WM is a right decision.

Food for thought: HTC executive shake up

http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/21/4...ures-disastrous-first-and-production-problems
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app

It will be sad to see them go, downsizing is never pretty. I really hope we'll see a phone running sense in the future generations.. I think the one should have been much more popular than it is.
Sent from my Tricked out HTC One

Its overdue!!
When a company goes down that fast, major changes are a must!!

Just sack the CEO and let someone else bought the company.

This is very very sad news, also the launch of the One in my country is a disaster.... Not enough unit to sale, only units for pre-ordered customers, delayed 3-4 times. I really hope the doubled manufacture rate of the One will help them get out of this situation...

Google - please buy HTC!!

yes but consider this
if the US staff if being changed or they are leaving on their own, the motherbase is still in Taiwan, if anything those leaving are those who failed HTC so far
Let's not forget the One X main failure was the US market
Slashgear's take on the news
HTC sees more top execs disappear as Facebook fouls First launch
and little less drama
Nonetheless, HTC’s future is about more than just a few high-profile staff looking elsewhere for their next challenge. The company has apparently pushed through its HTC One production issues, with output said to double this month alone, and the unaudited sales figures from April indicated that demand for the flagship was certainly there. HTC has been pushing ahead with cost-cutting, too, axing little-used services like HTC Watch in less popular locations.
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and did the press consider that Eirc is just a guy who left his job and bad mouthing the place
Leigh ‏@jetleigh 9h
Proud to say I work for @HTC. #hatersgonnahate
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https://twitter.com/jetleigh/status/337036907546570752
Leigh ‏@jetleigh 8h
@verge you guys are missing a big piece to this, creates a misleading story. *sigh.*
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Executive hemorrhage continues : http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/22/4355290/htc-asia-ceo-lennard-hoornik-leaves-company

i dont think this will affect anything at all..they are always people who can do a better job than those who have left

They just might bring in new people that can get HTC out of this disaster, you never know, HTC might be better off without them.
Ps. Can somebody rename this thread? There are threads created every minute about the same topic.
Sent from my HTC Desire HD using xda app-developers app

For everyone worried that HTC will no longer exist, just remember that Nokia, Yahoo, AOL, MySpace, and many others still exist even though they have not been relevant for a whole lot longer

hamdir said:
Slashgear's take on the news
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This from that article would be an absolute disaster.
A reshuffle in how HTC makes its strategy decisions could be part of the reason behind the shake-up, it’s suggested, with the company shifting product planning to the Taipei HQ and potentially leaving the Seattle office out of the loop.​Asian companies don't know how to market toward Western audiences and HTC's been historically bad. Controlling it all out of Taiwan would just make things worse. And if you look at where the people went most are in better jobs with bigger and growing companies so "house cleaning" doesn't seem like what's behind their departure. People on the inside have a more accurate view of the present and future and mass exodus is never a good sign.
Here's what Forbes said...
Once an undeniable power in the U.S. smartphone market (second only to Apple ’s iPhone in 2011), the Taiwan-based HTC Corp. is suffering the latest bump in what has been a slow, drawn-out stumble.
The company’s chief product officer, Kouji Kodera, has left the company, according to a report by The Verge. Kodera’s departure is one of a number of recent HTC fence-jumpers, which includes vice president of global communications Jason Gordon, global retail marketing manager Rebecca Rowland, director of digital marketing John Starkweather, and product strategy manager Eric Lin, according to the report. HTC Asia’s CEO Lennard Hoornik has also chosen to leave the company following two months of leave time.
This exodus of talent only worsens a grim outlook for the company in 2013. The HTC One – the company’s latest iPhone-esque smartphone – has not been the game-changer the company needed to bounce back from poor sales in 2012. Investors have taken notice, as they tend to do (eventually) and HTC’s share prices have fallen to $288 from $432 [the One X/S/V launch] this time last year on the Taiwan exchange.​http://www.forbes.com/sites/karsten...retreating-in-the-face-of-iphone-and-samsung/

The thing with Eric Lin is that even when he first "introduced" himself to the community at large for I believe it was pocketnow he came off as a very abrasive and quite negative representative for HTC (and that was in 2009). In terms of PR he was a bad move by the company...In that it doesn't shock me in the least that he is a very outspoken critic of HTC America.
Even speaking with him at some of the live events he's still extremely abrasive...he's a really bad spokesperson for even a company performing well

kurby said:
They just might bring in new people that can get HTC out of this disaster, you never know, HTC might be better off without them.
Ps. Can somebody rename this thread? There are threads created every minute about the same topic.
Sent from my HTC Desire HD using xda app-developers app
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Good idea. Done.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app

domineus said:
he came off as a very abrasive and quite negative representative for HTC (and that was in 2009).
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So either he was really good at his job and HTC decided to overlook his personality traits or, since he was at HTC for four years, HTC's incompetent for allowing such a key position to be filled with someone not up to the task.

Forbes iPhone esk quote is ridiculous as well as measuring the one success so pre maturely
I give up with American media

hamdir said:
Forbes iPhone esk quote is ridiculous as well as measuring the one success so pre maturely
I give up with American media
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Their basing their conclusion on HTC's guidance for Q2 2013 which is below (by 21%) what they actually achieved in Q2 2012 with the X/S/V and that at this point last year their stock price is 33% lower with the One on the market than when the X/S/V were on the market for the same amount of time. I was hoping for HTC's sake that today's big Verizon announcment was that they'd be carrying the One. It turned out to be a partnership with Jennifer Lopez aimed at the U.S. Latin market.
Here's HTC projected performance along with their historical performance (as provided by them).

Off to enjoy my HTC One
Enjoy the stock exchange Barry I share no interest
---------- Post added at 08:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 PM ----------
By the way, isn't it odd that you only contribute to death stories around this specific forum and nothing to do with the device it self?
At least Baron took a bold step
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2157153&page=612

You really don't like HTC at all Barry, do you? Never see you saying anything good about them and always praising Samsung like they have no faults at all and any problems that they do have, you seem to brush them under the carpet like they are non-issues i.e. the screen issues yet when it comes to HTC and a minor problem, it is just an outrage and that this will severely hurt the company according to you......
Regarding this "shake up", just because people have left the company doesn't neccasrily mean that the company is going down, as posted by one of them and an article, it sounds like they weren't happy working at HTC....... how that relates to "the end of HTC", please explain......... besides, it might be a good thing as posted, their marketing is crap (much better this year but still not good enough to match Samsung) and this is one of the most important areas as to if a product will do well combined with sales commissions, Samsung know fine well how it important it is, otherwise they wouldn't be throwing such a stupid amount of money at that department let alone increasing it substantially each year, that is largely why they are so popular and sell so many units as has been proven even if a product gets better reviews and is better overall and is preferred by the majority of users across forums/polls etc. Looking at both devices the other day, HTC one shoved with all the other devices where as the galaxy s4 has its very own stand and the device isn't clamped down anywhere as much and you even have a wee display notice beside the phone saying something like "call for assistance to demonstrate the features" and everywhere you look, you just see GS 4 posters.... this is where HTC and other companies fail big time and is what cost them their sales, X company could have the very best product by miles, however, what is the point if you have Y company that has a device, which isn't as good but are paying/bribing the shops more in order (more than other companies) to push their devices onto the customers?? In that situation, what do you think is going to appeal to the average joe customer more....
Plus HTC need to branch out to more market areas in order to create more brand presence as at the minute, average joes probably view HTC like what we view ZTE etc.
The GS 4 is not the best selling phone purely because of the SD slot and/or removable battery and/or its software gimmicks/features (maybe it is for the likes of most of the people on this forum but not for the mass consumer i.e. average joes and you can quite clearly see this isn't the case as apple aren't having problems with their iphones and sales.....) or/and because it is free of faults (how many note II and GS 3 devices died last year from the sudden death issue?? Surely that would leave a bad taste??? Not to mention when it took Samsung so long to admit that there was a problem let alone fix it.....EDIT: Oh and their awful repair service too! Blaming it on water damage......), GS 4 has more serious issues compared to the one currently i.e. over heating, poor performance in real world usage, screen issues (be it pink/purple tint, red pixels, screen glass or/and AMOLED breaking/cracking with slight pressure), audio issues etc. The one's issues are mainly cosmetic and some aren't even "issues" i.e. that tiny tiny gap at the top/bottom which doesn't even measure in at 1mm can hardly be consider an issue since it normal as the speaker covers aren't part of the zero gap body, if that is consider an issue then every single phone has that issue especially the GS 4, check the camera lens area and back cover parts:
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/04/dsc05710-1366741454.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/04/dsc05555.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/04/dsc05553.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/04/dsc05538.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/04/dsc05492.jpg
Heck Samsung could have just released the exact same phone as the GS 3 but with that 1080P screen and they would have still have sold the same amount as what they currently have with the GS 4.
It is just like everything these days especially the game and film industry, you hype and market the **** out of the stuff, they sell millions, however, be bloody awful, you then have your GOTY and film of the year that doesn't sell as well due to the lack of marketing.
/rant
Anyway, back on topic, as I was saying, this could be a good thing, getting new and better people in to carry out those jobs and get some fresh ideas.
Sounds like the CEO needs to go as well......

Why does Google not make a bigger deal about the Nexus6?

This is clearly one of the top of the line phones.
If Google advertised this phone like samsung does theirs, it would be a top seller (it already is in my mind), but a top seller globally just like the iPhone is.
I dont understand why Google doesn't promote this phone, especially since it is the creme de la creme of Android phones.
I'm also wondering, why does Google tell us preorders begin Sept 29th, and then when Today (its basically 11AM already) is Sept 29th, the pre-order is not up yet, and we are all shrouded in mystery as to when it will actually be available for pre-order.
They stopped doing events for the Nexus releases (but do events for other lesser important releases)...
Google, Step up your game ! This is the best phone out there, and you're letting it sit on the sidelines hopefully to be discovered.

slickromeo said:
This is clearly one of the top of the line phones.
If Google advertised this phone like samsung does theirs, it would be a top seller (it already is in my mind), but a top seller globally just like the iPhone is.
I dont understand why Google doesn't promote this phone, especially since it is the creme de la creme of Android phones.
I'm also wondering, why does Google tell us preorders begin Sept 29th, and then when Today (its basically 11AM already) is Sept 29th, the pre-order is not up yet, and we are all shrouded in mystery as to when it will actually be available for pre-order.
They stopped doing events for the Nexus releases (but do events for other lesser important releases)...
Google, Step up your game ! This is the best phone out there, and you're letting it sit on the sidelines hopefully to be discovered.
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It's October

Were in October dude, it will be available to buy when its available, no sooner, no later, no matter what you are told.
Why do they need to make a bigger deal out of, when what they are doing already has you feeling like this?

I am a rare breed of android purist, enthusiast.
I would like for people to ask me when they see my phone "Oh is that the new nexus?" instead of "Oh is that the new Galaxy phone?" <-- THIS
we need to change this, lol.
this is part of the reason why android gets a bad reputation, people complain about sub-par phones (compared to the nexus), and they rarely experience the lag-free pureness of NEXUS...
I seriously met someone once, who compared a crappy $50 android phone to the iPhone, and concluded to themselves that android sucks because of it. because they've already tried out android, and it didnt work for them... Android gets diluted by being modified by so many crappy U.I.'s and specs that any manufacturer's whim puts out. This is another reason why Nexus should be more well-known.

B/c the phone is so big as it is that they are worried that making it a 'big' deal about it will make it too 'big.'

slickromeo said:
I am a rare breed of android purist, enthusiast.
I would like for people to ask me when they see my phone "Oh is that the new nexus?" instead of "Oh is that the new Galaxy phone?" <-- THIS
we need to change this, lol.
this is part of the reason why android gets a bad reputation, people complain about sub-par phones (compared to the nexus), and they rarely experience the lag-free pureness of NEXUS...
I seriously met someone once, who compared a crappy $50 android phone to the iPhone, and concluded to themselves that android sucks because of it. because they've already tried out android, and it didnt work for them... Android gets diluted by being modified by so many crappy U.I.'s and specs that any manufacturer's whim puts out. This is another reason why Nexus should be more well-known.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why do you care so much what other people think?

237
slickromeo said:
I am a rare breed of android purist, enthusiast.
I would like for people to ask me when they see my phone "Oh is that the new nexus?" instead of "Oh is that the new Galaxy phone?" <-- THIS
we need to change this, lol.
this is part of the reason why android gets a bad reputation, people complain about sub-par phones (compared to the nexus), and they rarely experience the lag-free pureness of NEXUS...
I seriously met someone once, who compared a crappy $50 android phone to the iPhone, and concluded to themselves that android sucks because of it. because they've already tried out android, and it didnt work for them... Android gets diluted by being modified by so many crappy U.I.'s and specs that any manufacturer's whim puts out. This is another reason why Nexus should be more well-known.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Get your Nexus, live your life.
Who cares what other people think?

its more about caring about the widespread ignorance, that is all.

Agree with _MetalHead_ definitely.
In my point of view, the Nexus brand of Google was not entirely was supposed to be a customer's alternative.

I always wondered the same thing. It's almost like they don't care about their Nexus line. Google tends to be the same way about a lot of their products. Jack of all trades, master of a few.

besides all that, it still sucks that google doesn't want to or hasn't for whatever reason given us an exact time when we can pre-order.

I think they are making a big deal about it just by the fact that they are offering it subsidized on all carriers which is a huge step away from the Nexus philosophy.

I think they are leaving it with the carriers. I do have to agree though, I craps deal with third party android ui and all the lags it come with that the pure android doesn't. ..that automatically confirm their ignorance. I personally don't care though. .... I still rock my note 4, despite its ui lag it is better than iPhone lmao.

I suspect they keep the Nexus low-key to avoid angering the various other Android OEMs.

Maybe that made sense when they were $349. but now that they're basically the same price, and they're not competing with other OEM's on price anymore, I think it has become a non-issue, and suspect its for other reasons they're so low-key.

Google, in my eyes and with the past Nexi, wants to sell the SOFTware more than their HARDware. If they wanted to they could make a commercial just like the other OEMs; they have cash to do so. Instead have you noticed their push with Android as a whole? Software is where they make money. So instead of trying to explain to people what the Nexus 5 really is, I just tell them it's the Google Phone.

slickromeo said:
Maybe that made sense when they were $349. but now that they're basically the same price, and they're not competing with other OEM's on price anymore, I think it has become a non-issue, and suspect its for other reasons they're so low-key.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even at $649+ it is less expensive than similar flagships. I suspect the price is higher than N4 and N5 to avoid what happened to the LG G2, and they keep it low-key to keep all OEMs happy.

Pixel Prediction (6 months from now 10/5/16-4/5/17)

I've been talking a lot with my friends about this who are also Android users. I know there are a lot of opinions about the Pixel, so I thought it would be interesting to make a thread to check back on in 6 months from launch to see how things panned out. At the end of the day either Google is correct with this phone, or the community was right in predicting the change. I figured 6 months is enough time to get the phone in the pipeline and where a price cut would be susceptible if one were to occur.
Here's my analysis:
Existing problems:
1. Pixel phone contains basic vanilla Android at the same price as an iPhone and Samsung with feature filled software skins.
2. Apple and Samsung both have established their product in the marketplace, unlike the Pixel. Samsung didn't get any real traction until the Galaxy S3/Note 3.........three generations in.....this is Pixel's first.
3. The biggest competitor (Galaxy/Note 7), both have expandable SD card storage and water resistance that the Pixel does not.
4. Only exclusive on Verizon, which allows only a small population to get it subsidized. (Both Apple/Samsung sell contract subsidized phones for BOTH Verizon and Sprint which creates a lower barrier to entry).
5. Google assistant which is one of its selling points, I don't see a huge immediate use for it unlike a better camera, or water resistance. There is a variant of this type of technology already out. It's called "SIRI" for iPhone and "S-Voice" for Samsung. It's been out for years and I don't know anyone personally who uses either on a daily basis. (or at all)
6. There are no "frills" to this phone. I keep saying that, however; the typically buyer of iPhone/Samsung do not know anything about the internals or the hardware. (How else would Apple get people to buy $3,000 laptops ? It's not the hardware they are buying). The phone is just too plain for mainstream appeal. Next time you see someone with a Samsung ask them if their bootloader is locked........then ask it in Japanese....you'll get the same response.
Pixel is taking aim at "mainstream", yet offering very little in terms of "frills" that mainstream typically likes yet charging flagship pricing. There is already a significant conflict in this strategy.
It's obvious based on the chart I uploaded Google's competency is not hardware unlike Apple......which would explain a lot. While I love Android, it's a small revenue of their overall revenue. Most likely, they are looking to diversify from just search and add to the bottom line as well from the smartphone market. It's very bold to try and compete against Apple that gets 53% of their overall revenue from iPhone alone, when Google has very little experience in that area (hardware).
Prediction:
In 6 months (or less), the Pixel phones will get price cuts to the same price as the 5x ($379) and 6p ($499). The phone won't be a flop and Google will keep it, but the price point was set too high. I don't think the phone is a total bust, but I do think with 99% certainty that this was priced too high to be competitive........Google just doesn't know it yet
Google right now can't even manage a proper messenger app (messenger, hangouts, allo.....seriously which one am I supposed to use Google ?), canceled Project Ara, canceled Google Glass, etc.......there's a lack of direction with the company needless to say.
Edit: Google search for Pixel compared to iPhone and Galaxy S7 (I left out Note 7 due to exploding battery interest) which has fallen off a cliff since the Pixel debut.

great post =) I agree with you

Well written. Very clear.
For me there is also a design problem.
The material design is too white and hurts my eyes especially in the evening. A dark theme is needed. So I am using Aquamail and not Gmail and apps with a dark theme. And black layers.
Maybe the Chinese will produce a better and cheaper phone. Who knows.
Maybe G is heading to a closed system ?

Or it could be the repeat of Google Pixel C with temporary "developer" discounts before the price goes back to list price. They don't seem to be too bothered about shifting stock.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA-Developers mobile app

According to The Verge websites interview with Google's hardware chief, Google knows the first generation Pixel phone won't sale in volumes and expects to gain little market share, apparently there is long term strategy behind the scenes with the release of these first Pixel phones. Here's a quote from that article.
"We certainly arent going to have enormous volumes out of this product. This is very first innings for us." Googles metric of success for Pixel wont be whether it picks up significant market share, but whether it can garner customer satisfaction and form retail and carrier partnerships that Google can leverage for years to come."
http://www.theverge.com/a/google-pixel-phone-new-hardware-interview-2016
As for the cancellation of Google Glass and other Google hardware, that was done by the recently hired Google hardware chief so he could bring all the hardware teams together to focus on same objectives, so it appears Google now has a sense of direction, thanks to this new hardware chief aka ex-Motorola president. Here's a quote from another interview, just for reference.
"When Osterloh, 44, came on board in mid-April, he brought Google hardware groups into one division, shuttering projects he didn't see contributing to Googles future. Now the engineers and designers from Google Glass, Chromecast and Pixel all work together. Keeping them separate, he says, made it hard to drive toward the goal of portfolio strategy and focus."
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...-google-s-first-real-threat-to-apple-s-iphone

In order to gain customer satisfaction they need to have customers, and the feedback everywhere I look is that they've already caused dissatisfaction with their prices and therefore won't have a solid customer base - especially after alienating so many Nexus owners with the ludicrous six-week Nougat delay and the dropping of the Nexus line.

dahawthorne said:
In order to gain customer satisfaction they need to have customers, and the feedback everywhere I look is that they've already caused dissatisfaction with their prices and therefore won't have a solid customer base - especially after alienating so many Nexus owners with the ludicrous six-week Nougat delay and the dropping of the Nexus line.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As much as I love the Nexus and it's contributing users, they probably don't make up enough market share for Google to care. Most Nexus owners are phone enthusiasts, who make up a very small percentage of the smartphone market.
Some Pixel phones are already sold out in the Google Store, so people are buying them. It remains to be seen if it will be enough for their "Customer Satisfaction" goal but from their interview, they don't seem to feel the need to sell a whole lot in order to make that goal, at least initially.

mikeprius said:
I've been talking a lot with my friends about this who are also Android users. I know there are a lot of opinions about the Pixel, so I thought it would be interesting to make a thread to check back on in 6 months from launch to see how things panned out. At the end of the day either Google is correct with this phone, or the community was right in predicting the change. I figured 6 months is enough time to get the phone in the pipeline and where a price cut would be susceptible if one were to occur.
Here's my analysis:
Existing problems:
1. Pixel phone contains basic vanilla Android at the same price as an iPhone and Samsung with feature filled software skins.
This is called Bloat to me basic vanilla Android is a huge plus
2. Apple and Samsung both have established their product in the marketplace, unlike the Pixel. Samsung didn't get any real traction until the Galaxy S3/Note 3.........three generations in.....this is Pixel's first.
Even though Samsungs are some of the most bloated locked down devices and iPhones are not Android devices Google with Pixel branding I just a continuation. I do agree more Samsung Devices and iPhones will be sold but so what?
3. The biggest competitor (Galaxy/Note 7), both have expandable SD card storage and water resistance that the Pixel does not.
My new phone will have 128Gig do I really need more, unlimited cloud storage for photos will help too
4. Only exclusive on Verizon, which allows only a small population to get it subsidized. (Both Apple/Samsung sell contract subsidized phones for BOTH Verizon and Sprint which creates a lower barrier to entry).
I am not American but they do sell SIM unlocked devices in the States do they not?
5. Google assistant which is one of its selling points, I don't see a huge immediate use for it unlike a better camera, or water resistance. There is a variant of this type of technology already out. It's called "SIRI" for iPhone and "S-Voice" for Samsung. It's been out for years and I don't know anyone personally who uses either on a daily basis. (or at all)
I owned 16 smartphones since the iPhone and not once did lack of water resistance bother me and I had zero devices with water damage. Google Assist can not see me using it often but only time will tell
6. There are no "frills" to this phone. I keep saying that, however; the typically buyer of iPhone/Samsung do not know anything about the internals or the hardware. (How else would Apple get people to buy $3,000 laptops ? It's not the hardware they are buying). The phone is just too plain for mainstream appeal. Next time you see someone with a Samsung ask them if their bootloader is locked........then ask it in Japanese....you'll get the same response.
First to get Android updates, first device with Qualcomm 821, first with official daydream support, and yes at least some say this will have the best camera
Pixel is taking aim at "mainstream", yet offering very little in terms of "frills" that mainstream typically likes yet charging flagship pricing. There is already a significant conflict in this strategy.
Why do you think they are gearing this for the mainstream, they never had in the past?
It's obvious based on the chart I uploaded Google's competency is not hardware unlike Apple......which would explain a lot. While I love Android, it's a small revenue of their overall revenue. Most likely, they are looking to diversify from just search and add to the bottom line as well from the smartphone market. It's very bold to try and compete against Apple that gets 53% of their overall revenue from iPhone alone, when Google has very little experience in that area (hardware).
Google builds nothing they are contracting HTC to build the Pixel, Pixel XL. Nobody expects them every to sell more of the current Pixel phones than Apple sells
Prediction:
In 6 months (or less), the Pixel phones will get price cuts to the same price as the 5x ($379) and 6p ($499). The phone won't be a flop and Google will keep it, but the price point was set too high. I don't think the phone is a total bust, but I do think with 99% certainty that this was priced too high to be competitive........Google just doesn't know it yet
Google right now can't even manage a proper messenger app (messenger, hangouts, allo.....seriously which one am I supposed to use Google ?), canceled Project Ara, canceled Google Glass, etc.......there's a lack of direction with the company needless to say.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who knows about the price I do know the 32 Gig Nexus 6p was selling for $600 Canadian (I do not know what American pay) and in 6 months I can not see Google pricing the Pixel XL 32Gig lower. Sell more than Samsung and Apple no not believes this will every happen but different people by Samsung and Apple. People that generally never visit XDA and they are happy with whatever bloat Samsung and Apple gives them.

Maybe they are trying to create the equivalent of surface devices like Microsoft? I have no clue how that helps either of the companies. Maybe the idea is to just create a premium brand Google running Android even if every device sold loses money. Kind of like what Acura has to do with the NSX. It's an attempt to push the brand into a premium device discussion.
However, I definitely don't see anything that premium in the device. I don't see anything that premium in an iPhone either except that the lemmings have decided it is a premium product so like the unreliable Mercedes Benz cars out there, they retain resale value. At some point it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.
To achieve a perception of being a premium product like Apple products, Google probably has to fire most of the tech guys running the hardware division and hire a real marketing team. The Oct 4 presentation was astonishingly lackluster. Same amount of glamour as a BlackBerry presentation. Bunch of geeks thinking just because they have a search engine cash cow, they must know everything else there is to know about the business world.
Honestly what the Nexus/pixel and allo/duo/messenger/hangouts mess should teach us is that these guys like going back to the drawing board way too often. This is not a mature company and will abandon loyal customers without hesitation if someone decides that's the cool thing to do. Project Fi customers, you will be next.
So in a nutshell don't over analyze Google, it's just a bunch of high school kids doing experiments in a Chemistry Lab. At some point there will be purple foam and a few explosions.
And there is no point hitching yourself to this wagon. Don't buy anything Google tries to market as premium. They don't have the discipline to maintain a message. Eventually everything they sell will be priced like a commodity.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA-Developers mobile app

might want to modify the thread title's date. It's currently "10/5/16-4/5/16"; I'm pretty sure you meant "10/5/16-4/5/17"

First device with SD821? Not.

Google/Nexus phones were successful, because they targeted a specific niche that no one else did; devs/enthusiasts/folks who wanted to tinker and modify their phones completely and without restrictions.
Pixel phones have NOTHING that is "niche" driven; they are just like Apple/Samsung/who ever, with nothing really unique(S Pen, etc) to attract anyone really..
Sure, they will get the curious newbie/Iphone/Samsung lovers, but, those folks already have alot of choices, and those choices have alot more "features" that those folks want.
So, I cant fathom how this device will be anything more than a novelty, especially at that ridiculous price point..

mikeprius said:
I've been talking a lot with my friends about this who are also Android users. I know there are a lot of opinions about the Pixel, so I thought it would be interesting to make a thread to check back on in 6 months from launch to see how things panned out. At the end of the day either Google is correct with this phone, or the community was right in predicting the change. I figured 6 months is enough time to get the phone in the pipeline and where a price cut would be susceptible if one were to occur.
Yadda, yadda, yadda............................................[emoji23]
.
Google right now can't even manage a proper messenger app (messenger, hangouts, allo.....seriously which one am I supposed to use Google ?), canceled Project Ara, canceled Google Glass, etc.......there's a lack of direction with the company needless to say.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great post! Lots of info there. [SARCASM] You might have a bit too much time on your hands though. [emoji1] [/SARCASM]
khanam said:
Honestly what the Nexus/pixel and allo/duo/messenger/hangouts mess should teach us is that these guys like going back to the drawing board way too often. This is not a mature company and will abandon loyal customers without hesitation if someone decides that's the cool thing to do. Project Fi customers, you will be next.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMO, Nexus/Pixel is not a mess, they are simply trying to gain market share other than the developer/techie community. I would bet that they will end up partnering with all of the major carriers to sell the phones subsidized, Verizon just got the nod for release day because it is the biggest. The pixels will also come down in price from the play store as well.
As far as the Duo/allo/hangouts/messenger thing, from what I've been reading they are trying to market hangouts to the enterprise side of the mobile market. I never really used it for anything other than video calls now and again. Duo is much more convenient for video calls, although I wish they would have just incorporated it into the dialer kind of how FaceTime is on iphone. I don't know what to think about allo. It doesn't handle sms, and it doesn't do anything that other already established apps do as good or better.
I'm just going to wait it out to see if the price comes down, or if my carrier gets it. If not, oh well, I will explore other options at that time. After all I'm still paying for my N6 through January...
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

mikeprius said:
1. Pixel phone contains basic vanilla Android at the same price as an iPhone and Samsung with feature filled software skins.
2. Apple and Samsung both have established their product in the marketplace, unlike the Pixel. Samsung didn't get any real traction until the Galaxy S3/Note 3.........three generations in.....this is Pixel's first.
3. The biggest competitor (Galaxy/Note 7), both have expandable SD card storage and water resistance that the Pixel does not.
4. Only exclusive on Verizon, which allows only a small population to get it subsidized. (Both Apple/Samsung sell contract subsidized phones for BOTH Verizon and Sprint which creates a lower barrier to entry).
5. Google assistant which is one of its selling points, I don't see a huge immediate use for it unlike a better camera, or water resistance. There is a variant of this type of technology already out. It's called "SIRI" for iPhone and "S-Voice" for Samsung. It's been out for years and I don't know anyone personally who uses either on a daily basis. (or at all)
6. There are no "frills" to this phone. I keep saying that, however; the typically buyer of iPhone/Samsung do not know anything about the internals or the hardware. (How else would Apple get people to buy $3,000 laptops ? It's not the hardware they are buying). The phone is just too plain for mainstream appeal. Next time you see someone with a Samsung ask them if their bootloader is locked........then ask it in Japanese....you'll get the same response.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. If you asked a user what was the difference between Touchwiz and vanilla Android, until Material Design the only thing they said was: Samsung looks nicer. Because Holo was ugly. But Material design changed that, so now basic Android is not ugly anymore. As for the gimmicks, a casual user will only use a fraction of the TouchWiz "features", and a vanilla Android user will not be missing any of those "features".
Pixel ha nice round icons, and a praised camera. You can consider it sold.
2. From the above linked interview this is the first step to establish Pixel as a product for the masses and not just for the techies. The are planning to sell 3-4 million units (good look with that). But even that's at least one order or magnitude below of the quantity Samsung and Apple sell. Google never bragged how many units they sold, you can't find official statistics, but it's obviously "not a damn lot", that's for sure.
3. And the iPhone does not have an SD card slot. The Galaxy S6 was a mistake for Samsung in every aspect, because they took away three things in one step: SD card, removable battery and custom roms. So there was a huge uproar, much bigger if they only played with these feature one at a time.
I too prefer an SD card, coming from Samsung phones, it was given, yet after one year using a mere 32GB phone I still live. So it's not a make/brake condition for me when buying a new phone.
5. It's a gimmick like Samsung's air gestures, keep awake when reading, knock twice on top to scroll to the top. You use it once then forget it. I bet for a week or two everybody will play with the assistant then forget it.
Compared to that Google Now cards are very useful, I use the Time to work, Time home card every day, and it helps avoiding the construction that kills the city, and to decide when it's totally beyond reason to leave home.
6. There are no real "frills". There are only those that some marketing think tank succeeds in convincing you that you actually need it. The camera is a frill enough to sell it, so it's the speed. Having the hardware from the start Google could optimize it a little to be better than the other manufacturers.

It is a mess. I compare it to the failures Apple had right after the Lisa, nonsense sales prediction with a exorbitant price point.
They can partner with as many carriers as they want over there (America, the world isn't just that) or try to subsidise phones.
Worldwide subsidisation of phones is impractical. And outside America the prices are even worse.

Highway 55 said:
IMO, Nexus/Pixel is not a mess, they are simply trying to gain market share other than the developer/techie community. I would bet that they will end up partnering with all of the major carriers to sell the phones subsidized, Verizon just got the nod for release day because it is the biggest. The pixels will also come down in price from the play store as well.
As far as the Duo/allo/hangouts/messenger thing, from what I've been reading they are trying to market hangouts to the enterprise side of the mobile market. I never really used it for anything other than video calls now and again. Duo is much more convenient for video calls, although I wish they would have just incorporated it into the dialer kind of how FaceTime is on iphone. I don't know what to think about allo. It doesn't handle sms, and it doesn't do anything that other already established apps do as good or better.
I'm just going to wait it out to see if the price comes down, or if my carrier gets it. If not, oh well, I will explore other options at that time. After all I'm still paying for my N6 through January...
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not sure why they abandoned hangouts for consumers - it was quite an all encompassing product for most of us between everything it handled - it just needed some tightening and polish but we finally had SMS, Voicemail, Video calling, IM, IP Calling all in 1. Now i have too many apps - when i instead want to simplify my life. No one likes to have something they were finding useful suddenly lose features - that just reeks of big brotherism - someone else deciding whats best for me instead of considering my own inputs.
On the pixel/nexus thing though - the way they should have done it is kept the nexus line alive and added a pixel or 2 phones with slightly more premium features but at a slightly higher price, then next generation a little higher price and so on.
That would have given all of us time to adjust and experiment. You do not just increase prices and abandon the nexus line without warning. That feels like them deciding what is best for us - like apple does. Give consumers choice, price products appropriately and allow them to cross bridges on price, features etc.
This abandoning nexus and replacing it with a non vanilla high priced pixel move is too sudden. That is why it feels like they do not listen to consumers and instead impose their vision on us. Who would like that? I chose to abandon iOS to have freedom - but the more they take those away from me - the more i look at Google and say, well this is not what i wanted. Locked bootloaders - does that not go against the very foundation of Android?
Another point - this AI push through Allo/Assistant is slowly going to convert you into a data contribution toward an engine - do you actually need to pay extra to lose your privacy - should that not happen in such a way that you get a discount on other products (i.e. your phone for example) which act as the conduit for your revealing your choices to the central database/skynet?

unfortunately, the mopes who sit in the production/sales meeting, only care about looking good to their bosses/making their bosses look good, and raise profits for shareholders..
They talk about how much Apple/Samsung charge for their phones, and sell 20 times more than Google does, so they figure, hey, lets just copy their business model, and we will look like heros.
Customers needs/wants get pushed to the back of the list, and market share/greater profits are all that matters..
And yeah, it sucks that we can now pay more for another "me too" phone, and, at the same time, surrender even more of our privacy, while paying through the nose for another Apple Clone..
No thanks, never a Pixel phone for me, at ANY price..

mixedguy said:
As much as I love the Nexus and it's contributing users, they probably don't make up enough market share for Google to care. Most Nexus owners are phone enthusiasts, who make up a very small percentage of the smartphone market.
Some Pixel phones are already sold out in the Google Store, so people are buying them. It remains to be seen if it will be enough for their "Customer Satisfaction" goal but from their interview, they don't seem to feel the need to sell a whole lot in order to make that goal, at least initially.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nexus no..it's a small segment. Android as a whole for Google is a very small amount of their revenue. Clearly the release of the Pixel is designed to make it a more considerable source of revenue for Google. They are not very diversified at the moment. All their money is in search.
AstroDigital said:
Who knows about the price I do know the 32 Gig Nexus 6p was selling for $600 Canadian (I do not know what American pay) and in 6 months I can not see Google pricing the Pixel XL 32Gig lower. Sell more than Samsung and Apple no not believes this will every happen but different people by Samsung and Apple. People that generally never visit XDA and they are happy with whatever bloat Samsung and Apple gives them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The United States there are 4 primary carriers (there are others, but the big 4 are AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and T-Mobile). Before all 4 carriers did this, but 2 still do and that is offer 24 month contracts to be signed for a subsidized phone. So for example a $800 iPhone can be bought at Verizon or Sprint for $200-$300 depending on the model, current or past, etc, etc. That's how iPhone was able to be made available in mass. There's no way the people in the US could buy these phones outright at their current cost in large populations. It's outside many people's affordability.
All these products full price are out of the affordability for nearly everyone, so either they use the contract or use payments. With exclusive Verizon, everyone will do payments or buy outright (smaller population)......many people still use the contract that I know, taking this off the table for one carrier reduces accessibility.
Also, 2 of the 4 carriers in the US are CMDA technology not GSM so unlocked phones are limited. My carrier is CMDA so I cannot buy Xperia, One plus 3, or Axon 7. If I could, I'd have bought the One plus 3. Instead I'm stuck with the Nexus or some "whitelisted" device.

istperson said:
1. If you asked a user what was the difference between Touchwiz and vanilla Android, until Material Design the only thing they said was: Samsung looks nicer. Because Holo was ugly. But Material design changed that, so now basic Android is not ugly anymore. As for the gimmicks, a casual user will only use a fraction of the TouchWiz "features", and a vanilla Android user will not be missing any of those "features".
Pixel ha nice round icons, and a praised camera. You can consider it sold.
2. From the above linked interview this is the first step to establish Pixel as a product for the masses and not just for the techies. The are planning to sell 3-4 million units (good look with that). But even that's at least one order or magnitude below of the quantity Samsung and Apple sell. Google never bragged how many units they sold, you can't find official statistics, but it's obviously "not a damn lot", that's for sure.
3. And the iPhone does not have an SD card slot. The Galaxy S6 was a mistake for Samsung in every aspect, because they took away three things in one step: SD card, removable battery and custom roms. So there was a huge uproar, much bigger if they only played with these feature one at a time.
I too prefer an SD card, coming from Samsung phones, it was given, yet after one year using a mere 32GB phone I still live. So it's not a make/brake condition for me when buying a new phone.
5. It's a gimmick like Samsung's air gestures, keep awake when reading, knock twice on top to scroll to the top. You use it once then forget it. I bet for a week or two everybody will play with the assistant then forget it.
Compared to that Google Now cards are very useful, I use the Time to work, Time home card every day, and it helps avoiding the construction that kills the city, and to decide when it's totally beyond reason to leave home.
6. There are no real "frills". There are only those that some marketing think tank succeeds in convincing you that you actually need it. The camera is a frill enough to sell it, so it's the speed. Having the hardware from the start Google could optimize it a little to be better than the other manufacturers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While I can laugh at most people who become enamored with gimmicks, that's what sells. The stupid air gestures, and whatever toggles Samsung has that people flock to. They have no idea what chip is in their phone. Same goes for iPhone.
Everything else you are saying are your own personal preferences, not what mainstream people want. Majority of society is easily distracted by shiny gimmicks, engages in herd mentality buying decisions, and want instant gratification........these people are not "astute buyers" by any means, but they are the people who open their wallets and purses to buy these products.............it's pathetic but that's how the market is. Samsung and iPhone meet all these "needs". Pixel does not.

mixedguy said:
According to The Verge websites interview with Google's hardware chief, Google knows the first generation Pixel phone won't sale in volumes and expects to gain little market share, apparently there is long term strategy behind the scenes with the release of these first Pixel phones. Here's a quote from that article.
"We certainly arent going to have enormous volumes out of this product. This is very first innings for us." Googles metric of success for Pixel wont be whether it picks up significant market share, but whether it can garner customer satisfaction and form retail and carrier partnerships that Google can leverage for years to come."
http://www.theverge.com/a/google-pixel-phone-new-hardware-interview-2016
As for the cancellation of Google Glass and other Google hardware, that was done by the recently hired Google hardware chief so he could bring all the hardware teams together to focus on same objectives, so it appears Google now has a sense of direction, thanks to this new hardware chief aka ex-Motorola president. Here's a quote from another interview, just for reference.
"When Osterloh, 44, came on board in mid-April, he brought Google hardware groups into one division, shuttering projects he didn't see contributing to Googles future. Now the engineers and designers from Google Glass, Chromecast and Pixel all work together. Keeping them separate, he says, made it hard to drive toward the goal of portfolio strategy and focus."
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...-google-s-first-real-threat-to-apple-s-iphone
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The Google glass and other hardware that they were experimenting with does make sense b/c it was untested and they were looking at pioneering a new potential product. There's no existing prior benchmark. That has more leeway including cancellation which I understand. I think long-term it is a good idea Google has more control over the hardware and not just software because there has been too much fragmentation across the board in devices and with other Google products.
With that said, smartphones have been out for many years now, with the saturation really beginning to take hold in 2009 and forward (where more and more people were rapidly buying smartphones). There's enough data they could have made a more intelligent analysis on how to price the product (which I suspect is way too high).